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FILM: BEST OF 2006

JONATHAN ROMNEY

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JONATHAN ROMNEY

1 Climates (Nuri Bilge Ceylan) A tender, painful, scabrously witty account of separation, especially discomforting as it stars the director and his wife. High-definition photography provides a pitiless scrutiny of faces and landscapes alike.

2 Les Signes (Eugène Green) At thirty minutes, this vignette about a missing fisherman is a marvel of suggestive concision: a parable of perception that’s as close as cinema comes to a Mallarmé sonnet.

3 The Family Friend (Paolo Sorrentino) Part farce, part Jacobean drama, this tale of provincial Italian lowlife is a fireworks display of formal invention: After the Zen-like chic of The Consequences of Love (2004), Sorrentino recasts himself as a punk Fellini.

4 Sehnsucht (Valeska Grisebach) Minor-key cinema par excellence, this sensitive treatment of a mundane theme—a small-town love triangle—achieves a Flaubertian complexity.

5 The Departed (Martin Scorsese) Scorsese lets his hair down at last: a brisk, boisterously cynical cops-and-robbers movie that crackles with lapidary invective.

6 Marie Antoinette (Sofia Coppola) Uneven, precious, a wallow in sumptuous vacancy? Coppola’s costume folly may be all of these, yet it’s also an affecting, melancholic exploration of the inside of a gilded bubble. Ophüls for shopaholic youth.

7 Pan’s Labyrinth (Guillermo del Toro) A dazzlingly risky undertaking: Tolkienesque whimsy embedded in the brutal reality of Fascist Spain. Anything but a children’s fi lm.

8 It’s Winter (Rafi Pitts) Swaggering malcontent arrives in small town, causes trouble, romances widow, meets his just deserts: the nearest Iranian cinema comes to a Jim Thompson thriller.

9 Gardens in Autumn (Otar Iosseliani) A rambling satirical frieze of folly, political power, and the call of the dolce vita, from the veteran Georgian provocateur.

10 Colossal Youth (Pedro Costa) The militantly uncompromising Portuguese director composes a stylized, ferociously austere essay on people and architecture, with a visual style seemingly etched in charcoal and chalk.

Jonathan Romney is a film critic for the Independent On Sunday and a contributing editor of Sight & Sound.

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Cover, left to right, from top left: Martin Kippenberger, 7. Preis (7th Prize), 1987, oil on canvas, 70 3/8 x 59 1/16". Pawel Althamer, Fairy Tale (detail), 2006. Installation view, Pferdeställe des Postfuhrants (Post Office Stables), Augustrasse, Berlin. Photocopy of a reproduction of David Hammons, Higher Goals, 1986. From “David Hammons: The Unauthorized Retrospective,” Triple Candie, New York, 2006. Mike Kelley, Heartthrob Split, 2005, mixed media with video projection and photographs, dimensions variable. Installation view, Gagosian Gallery, New York, 2006. Park Chan-wook, Lady Vengeance, 2005, still from a color film in 35 mm, 112 minutes. Lee Geum-ja (Lee Young-ae). Students reenacting Allan Kaprow’s Household, 1964, as part of the exhibition “Allan Kaprow: Art as Life,” Haus der Kunst, Munich, 2006. Piotr Uklanski, Summer Love, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm, 93 minutes. The Stranger (Karel Roden). Tacita Dean, Kodak, 2006, still from a black-and-white and color film in 16 mm, 44 minutes. Hannah Höch, The Beautiful Girl, 1919, photomontage and collage, 13 3/4 x 11 1/2". Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno, Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait, 2006, still from a color video, 90 minutes. Gustav Klimt, Adele Bloch-Bauer II, 1912, oil on canvas, 74 3/4 x 47 1/4". Ashley Bickerton, Green Reflecting Head Sam No. 2, 2006, printed paper with steel pins, 49 x 39". Maureen Gallace, Cape Cod, Winter, 2004, oil on panel, 11 x 14". View of “Isa Genzken,” 2006, Wiener Secession, Vienna. Brice Marden, Lethykos (for Tonto), 1976, oil and beeswax on canvas, four panels, overall 84 x 72". Poul Kjærholm, PK O, laminated wood chair, 1950–51. Lee Lozano, Ream, 1964, oil on canvas, 72 x 96". Yves Klein, Untitled monogold (MG 17), 1960, gold leaf on board, 78 3/8 x 60 1/4". From Blue monochrome, monogold, and monopink, “triptych,” 1960. Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Climates, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm transferred from video, 97 minutes. Isa (Nuri Bilge Ceylan). Sigmar Polke, Untitled, 2006, artificial resin on polyester fiber, 46 x 54". James Benning, Casting a Glance, 2006–, strip from an unfinished color film in 16 mm, approx. 90 minutes. Invitation for “Jürgen Klauke: Works from the Early ’70s,” Ritter/Zamet, London, 2006. View of Herzog & de Meuron, “Perception Restrained,” 2006, Museum of Modern Art, New York. Peter Fischli and David Weiss, Natural Grace (detail), 1984–85, color photograph, 16 x 12". From the series “Stiller Nachmittag” (Quiet Afternoon), 1984–85. Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Parc Central, 2006, still from a color video, 50 minutes. Nate Lowman, Oops Maxima (Peach), 2005, silk screen on canvas, 30 x 30". Tony Oursler, Spaced, 2006, fiberglass sculpture, DVD, DVD player, Plus U7-132 XGA DLP digital projector, 50 x 67 x 27". Damien Hirst, Ira Dei (The Wrath of God), 2005, acrylic, metal, shark, and formaldehyde solution, 78 x 108 x 36". Cerith Wyn Evans, Please pay attention motherfucker, 2006. Installation view, Institute of Contemporary Art, London. Photo: Danny Birchall. Sofia Coppola, Marie Antoinette, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm, 123 minutes. Marie Antoinette (Kirsten Dunst). Robert Rauschenberg, Charlene (detail), 1954, oil, charcoal, paper, fabric, newspaper, wood, plastic, mirror, and metal on four Homasote panels mounted on wood with electric light, 89 x 112 x 3 1/2". Mel Bochner, Money/Obscene, 2006, oil on velvet, 74 x 47". Adam McEwen, Dresden (Phosphorbrandbombe), 2006, phosphorescent paint and chewing gum on canvas, 90 x 70". Christopher Williams, Rollerstacker, R-136MR, Manufacturer: The Kaynar Company, Los Angeles, CA, 90054. Date of production: 1975. Vancouver, BC, April 6, 2005 (NR. 1, 2 & 3), 2005 (detail), triptych, color photographs, each 16 x 20". Joan Jonas, The Shape, the Scent, the Feel of Things, 2005. Performance view, Dia:Beacon, Beacon, NY. Cameron Jamie, Kranky Klaus, 2002–2003, still from a color video, 26 minutes. Seth Price, Untitled Film, Right, 2006, still from a color film in 16 mm, 14 minutes. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez addressing the 61st session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, New York, September 20, 2006. Photo: AP/Julie Jacobson. View of Thomas Hirschhorn, “Superficial Engagement,” 2006, Gladstone Gallery, New York.
Cover, left to right, from top left: Martin Kippenberger, 7. Preis (7th Prize), 1987, oil on canvas, 70 3/8 x 59 1/16". Pawel Althamer, Fairy Tale (detail), 2006. Installation view, Pferdeställe des Postfuhrants (Post Office Stables), Augustrasse, Berlin. Photocopy of a reproduction of David Hammons, Higher Goals, 1986. From “David Hammons: The Unauthorized Retrospective,” Triple Candie, New York, 2006. Mike Kelley, Heartthrob Split, 2005, mixed media with video projection and photographs, dimensions variable. Installation view, Gagosian Gallery, New York, 2006. Park Chan-wook, Lady Vengeance, 2005, still from a color film in 35 mm, 112 minutes. Lee Geum-ja (Lee Young-ae). Students reenacting Allan Kaprow’s Household, 1964, as part of the exhibition “Allan Kaprow: Art as Life,” Haus der Kunst, Munich, 2006. Piotr Uklanski, Summer Love, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm, 93 minutes. The Stranger (Karel Roden). Tacita Dean, Kodak, 2006, still from a black-and-white and color film in 16 mm, 44 minutes. Hannah Höch, The Beautiful Girl, 1919, photomontage and collage, 13 3/4 x 11 1/2". Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno, Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait, 2006, still from a color video, 90 minutes. Gustav Klimt, Adele Bloch-Bauer II, 1912, oil on canvas, 74 3/4 x 47 1/4". Ashley Bickerton, Green Reflecting Head Sam No. 2, 2006, printed paper with steel pins, 49 x 39". Maureen Gallace, Cape Cod, Winter, 2004, oil on panel, 11 x 14". View of “Isa Genzken,” 2006, Wiener Secession, Vienna. Brice Marden, Lethykos (for Tonto), 1976, oil and beeswax on canvas, four panels, overall 84 x 72". Poul Kjærholm, PK O, laminated wood chair, 1950–51. Lee Lozano, Ream, 1964, oil on canvas, 72 x 96". Yves Klein, Untitled monogold (MG 17), 1960, gold leaf on board, 78 3/8 x 60 1/4". From Blue monochrome, monogold, and monopink, “triptych,” 1960. Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Climates, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm transferred from video, 97 minutes. Isa (Nuri Bilge Ceylan). Sigmar Polke, Untitled, 2006, artificial resin on polyester fiber, 46 x 54". James Benning, Casting a Glance, 2006–, strip from an unfinished color film in 16 mm, approx. 90 minutes. Invitation for “Jürgen Klauke: Works from the Early ’70s,” Ritter/Zamet, London, 2006. View of Herzog & de Meuron, “Perception Restrained,” 2006, Museum of Modern Art, New York. Peter Fischli and David Weiss, Natural Grace (detail), 1984–85, color photograph, 16 x 12". From the series “Stiller Nachmittag” (Quiet Afternoon), 1984–85. Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Parc Central, 2006, still from a color video, 50 minutes. Nate Lowman, Oops Maxima (Peach), 2005, silk screen on canvas, 30 x 30". Tony Oursler, Spaced, 2006, fiberglass sculpture, DVD, DVD player, Plus U7-132 XGA DLP digital projector, 50 x 67 x 27". Damien Hirst, Ira Dei (The Wrath of God), 2005, acrylic, metal, shark, and formaldehyde solution, 78 x 108 x 36". Cerith Wyn Evans, Please pay attention motherfucker, 2006. Installation view, Institute of Contemporary Art, London. Photo: Danny Birchall. Sofia Coppola, Marie Antoinette, 2006, still from a color film in 35 mm, 123 minutes. Marie Antoinette (Kirsten Dunst). Robert Rauschenberg, Charlene (detail), 1954, oil, charcoal, paper, fabric, newspaper, wood, plastic, mirror, and metal on four Homasote panels mounted on wood with electric light, 89 x 112 x 3 1/2". Mel Bochner, Money/Obscene, 2006, oil on velvet, 74 x 47". Adam McEwen, Dresden (Phosphorbrandbombe), 2006, phosphorescent paint and chewing gum on canvas, 90 x 70". Christopher Williams, Rollerstacker, R-136MR, Manufacturer: The Kaynar Company, Los Angeles, CA, 90054. Date of production: 1975. Vancouver, BC, April 6, 2005 (NR. 1, 2 & 3), 2005 (detail), triptych, color photographs, each 16 x 20". Joan Jonas, The Shape, the Scent, the Feel of Things, 2005. Performance view, Dia:Beacon, Beacon, NY. Cameron Jamie, Kranky Klaus, 2002–2003, still from a color video, 26 minutes. Seth Price, Untitled Film, Right, 2006, still from a color film in 16 mm, 14 minutes. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez addressing the 61st session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, New York, September 20, 2006. Photo: AP/Julie Jacobson. View of Thomas Hirschhorn, “Superficial Engagement,” 2006, Gladstone Gallery, New York.
DECEMBER 2006
VOL. 45, NO. 4
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